Sitting at your desk all day could harm your health
The results of a recent study will have you buying that electric standing desk you’ve been thinking about getting.
A few minutes every morning is all you need.
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Do you sit at a desk all day long for work? A lot of us do. A recent study done over 13 years was published this month in JAMA Network Open, and the results will have you buying that electric standing desk you’ve been thinking about getting for ages.
The study collected data about occupational sitting, leisure-time physical activity habits, and lifestyle through a health surveillance program of nearly 500,000 people in Taiwan from 1996 to 2017. Results showed that those who mostly sit at work have a 16% higher risk of death from all causes and a 34% higher risk of death from cardiovascular disease. Yikes.
But, researchers also said you can counteract these increased risks with an additional 15 to 30 minutes of physical activity each day. **Stands up to walk around for five minutes**
“The serious risks associated with prolonged occupational sitting can be mitigated by incorporating regular breaks and engaging in additional physical activity,” researchers wrote.
It turns out that light activity is better than no activity. A study released in 2023 by Columbia University and published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise found that people who did some light activity for five minutes every half hour had almost a 60% reduction in blood sugar spikes after a meal. Those who did one minute of exercise every half hour had a drop in blood pressure.
Don’t fear, though; all isn’t lost. CNN wellness expert and associate professor at George Washington University, Dr. Leana Wen, has shared some recommendations about what we can do to reduce these risks.
Wen referred to a study by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that recommends adults do a minimum of 150 minutes of moderate to high-intensity exercise a week – so if you can set aside time for a brisk walk, jog, bike ride or workout for about 22 minutes a day, often called “exercise snacks,” your body will thank you.
“Instead of walking around the neighborhood once before dinner, what about walking around twice? Instead of going to the gym twice a week, what about three times?” Wen suggests.
So get your smartwatch on and start paying attention to your activity level to see if you can reduce the risks of being stuck at your desk with a bit more moving around!
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